Corridors anon

Images of corridors - 1 hospital, 1 childrens home, 2 prisons, 2 schools.


This Spartan approach to the interiors of schools appears to have come about by default, rather than through any considered strategy, as if a puritan rejection of all things decorative will in some way lead to an improvement in the learning environment.
Today most enlightened workplaces realise that the surroundings have a marked effect on the quality of experience in the workplace. Bearing in mind that school is where life skills are gained and attitudes are first formed, it seems even more crucial that an awareness of the effects of environment and context are considered, and acted upon. Not only for the benefit of students and staff in the short term, but for society in general in the longer term.

Noticing the problem
The students themselves identified the issue of the dismal environment in schools almost by accident,  A new year 11 canteen had been built, it was furnished with modern well designed and interesting furniture and fittings, the walls were painted in colours and there were several posters framed upon the walls.
Without exception the students recognised this room as one that confirmed their maturity, aesthetic intelligence and more realistically portrayed the world they occupied outside of school.

Even those who were not yet old enough to enter the canteen recognised the enlightening effect it had on the school just by its presence. One student even noticed that the time seemed less oppressive on a blue faced clock, than on the standard uniform white ones.
But the factor that was to give us most food for thought were the posters, these where A0 art prints that you might find in a print gallery, and were carefully chosen to have broad appeal, yet without referring directly to anything that smacked of curriculum.
These prints triggered a student led critique of the rest of the schools imagery and displays, one that was eye-opening, if a little brutal at times.
Briefly, the key observations on the school as a whole were:

• Existing display is limited to a variety of  large soft-board panels fixed to the walls around the corridors.
• Display panels are shoddy and untidy – some are decorated with church fete like signage and frills.
• Staff attempts to ‘brighten up’ display boards are reminiscent of kindergarten (primary colours, clipart cartoons etc).
• Only schoolwork is ever displayed on them – often for so long no-one remembers who did the work.
• Students work, unless of an exceptional standard, never sets as high aspirational goals as professional images/displays would.
• Other students work is more often annoying or embarrassing than interesting.
• Essays make appallingly dull display (text in general too).
• Staff seem to feel obliged to represent curriculum subjects on display boards, but are seldom creative about it (portraits of great men).
• Some staff cannot produce displays that match the visual literacy of the majority of students.

Some students felt the display boards were actually aimed at parents and visitors – to demonstrate the standard of work expected by staff, rather than to inspire and stimulate students on a daily basis.
There was minimal need for active notice boards, for timetabling notices etc, what space remained was generally dealt with poorly.
Corridors were often treated as a sort of no-mans-land of un-adopted passageways between subjects, yet these are the spaces students inhabit between subjects.